May 12, 2026 at 5:32 PM EDT
Fetterman says he 'fully' understands why a Pennsylvania judge left Democratic Party

A longtime Pennsylvania judge who ran as a Democrat is dropping his affiliation with the Democratic Party over what he sees as antisemitism, and U.S. Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) is weighing in. Justice David Wecht "said in a statement he is switching his party affiliation to independent due to an 'acquiescence to Jew-hatred' becoming 'disturbingly common among activists, leaders and even many elected officials in the Democratic Party,'" Politico reported.

May 12, 2026 at 5:27 PM EDT
Ex-GOP lawmaker slams 'padded wall' president's rant about nothing 'but himself'

President Donald Trump does not care about anyone but himself, a former Trump supporter argued on Tuesday -- and, he added, is also talking like a crazy person. "He belongs in a room with padded walls," former Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) argued in a Substack video on Tuesday. "Put all of that aside. Most importantly, American voter, he doesn't give a f"-- about you."

May 12, 2026 at 12:00 PM EDT
GOP needs 'a lot of soul-searching' as policies threaten party: ex-Trump VP

Few have seen President Donald Trump as up close as his former Vice President Mike Pence. Not only did he serve under Trump during his first administration, but the Commander in Chief voiced support for January 6 rioters who wanted to "hang" Pence in the final days of the term. While Pence has been fairly quiet about his former boss since leaving office, in a Tuesday appearance on the conservative outlet Breitbart, he declared that the Republican party has some "soul searching" to do on the question of Trump's leadership.

May 12, 2026 at 11:57 AM EDT
Why Wall Street swapped 'TACO' for 'NACHO' as Trump sees no Iran end in sight

President Donald Trump is "beyond desperate" to find a path to victory over Iran, according to a new breakdown from The i Paper. As a workable solution feels increasingly out of reach, the piece argued that the dependable Wall Street "TACO" mantra has been swapped out for "NACHO." Luke McGee is a veteran reporter specializing in European politics, security and diplomacy. On Tuesday, he published a piece for The i Paper discussing the breakdown of Trump's negotiations with Iran to bring an end to the war he started and reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz. Citing a report from CNN, McGee explained that shortly after Trump declared the ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. was on "massive life support" and "unbelievably weak," sources indicated that he was "now more seriously considering a resumption of major combat operations."

May 12, 2026 at 11:23 AM EDT
The Supreme Court gives Trump countless victories -- and he still wants more

President Donald Trump and the MAGA movement have enjoyed some major legal victories in recent weeks, including the U.S. Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais -- which, critics say, guts the protections of the Voting Rights Act -- and a 4-3 Virginia Supreme Court ruling that struck down the state's new congressional maps. But according to The New Republic's Matt Ford, Trump deeply resents the U.S. Supreme Court's right-wing supermajority. Although the Roberts Court is voting in Trump's interests more often than not, Ford emphasizes, he is angry with the six GOP-appointed justices for voting against him at all.

May 12, 2026 at 11:07 AM EDT
'Detached from reality': Trump's overnight Truth Social spree hit with rapid-fire fact check

President Donald Trump's massive overnight social media spree -- promoting dozens of posts in a 12-hour period -- has been called out in the media and by critics, but one CNN fact-checker is labeling it "detached from reality." "It's hard to explain just how detached from reality President Trump's conspiracy-theory-filled social media posting spree last night and this morning was," wrote CNN's Daniel Dale.

May 12, 2026 at 11:03 AM EDT
Trump's economy has 'shaken' the faith of Christian entrepreneurs

As a combination of the war with Iran and an ever-shifting tariff regime drives inflation to the highest rates since the pandemic, President Donald Trump's economy has "shaken" the faith of Christian small business owners who question whether they can still afford to operate in the United States. According to Christianity Today, Trump's erratic tariff policy has not only driven up the cost of doing business, but it has threatened the "goodwill" business owners once held with their international suppliers.

May 12, 2026 at 5:57 AM EDT
Trump admin reverts to an old playbook in Cuba

For months, US President Donald Trump has been fixated on Cuba. He's issued threats and imposed additional sanctions on the island. The US military has conducted dozens of intelligence-gathering flights off the coast in recent weeks, suggesting a prelude to an invasion. The Cuban government has indicated a readiness to negotiate with the Trump administration on some issues, such as migration, drug trafficking and investment openings for Cuban-Americans. But Cuba's sovereignty is not negotiable.

May 12, 2026 at 5:51 AM EDT
Election chaos is already costing states millions --and it's only May

With less than six months until the general election, and state primaries already well underway, you'd think that the rules of engagement for the 2026 midterms would be set by now. But two developments last week should quickly disabuse you of that notion. This article was originally published by Votebeat, a nonprofit news organization covering local election administration and voting access.

May 12, 2026 at 5:32 AM EDT
I'm not a scammer --I'm collateral damage in the GOP's war on the American dream

For almost a month, I have been limping around my apartment, thinking this has got to be a metaphor for something. It's from one of those household injuries. I missed a step going down the stairs, landed on my foot with all my weight, and popped a calf muscle*. The first thing I thought of was the pain. The second thing: Oh, Jesus, I don't have health insurance. Like I said, a metaphor. Lots of people are like me. According to the Times , as much as 20 percent of Americans who were enrolled in their state's Obamacare exchanges have dropped out. The percentage is expected to get bigger by the end of the year, some analysts say. It's not because of anything we did. It's because of what the president and the Republicans did.

May 11, 2026 at 9:42 PM EDT
A legal quirk might force CA to pick between two MAGA candidates for governor

Despite being an overwhelmingly Democratic state, a quirk in California's election laws may result in California voters needing to choose between two pro-Trump Republicans in the upcoming governor's race. "The current system allows the top two candidates, regardless of party, to move on to the runoff," reported Los Angeles Times' Dakota Smith on Monday. "That has led to instances in which two Democrats or two Republicans have faced off in the general election."

May 11, 2026 at 8:36 PM EDT
MAGA accused of shady dirty trick in important swing district

Republicans are suspected of using dark money in a widely-distributed ad attacking two of the four Democratic candidates seeking to flip a swing district in the upcoming midterm elections. In a story first broken by Punchbowl congressional reporter Ally Mutnick, it appears that Lead Left PAC -- the organization behind the commercial -- uses a website with metadata connecting it to WinRed, a website that solicits contributions for Republican candidates and committees. Mutnick determined that the PAC has spent more than $500,000 in the Philadelphia area market to air the commercial, which addresses the race for Pennsylvania's 7th congressional district.